Cory Booker’s the favorite but Jeff Bell’s winning the battle of ideas
By Paul Mulshine | The Star Ledger
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on November 02, 2014 at 8:00 AM, updated November 02, 2014 at 10:58 AM
New Jersey is in court trying to convince a federal judge to permit betting on athletic events.
That would be fun. But it would be even more fun if we could do what the Aussies and the Brits do – bet on elections.
In that case the bookies would have to call on some savvy insider to set the line on a race like Tuesday’s U.S. Senate matchup between the heavy favorite, incumbent Democrat Cory Booker, and Republican challenger Jeff Bell.
The savvy insider I called was Pat Murray of the Monmouth University Poll.
“I would think 14 is probably pretty good for the over and under,” Murray said.
Me, too. The smart money says the former Newark mayor is likely to ring up a double-digit win over the former Reagan-era Republican policy wonk.
https://www.nj.com/opinion/index.ssf/2014/11/cory_bookers_the_favorite_but_jeff_bells_winning_the_battle_of_ideas_mulshine.html
Tag: Jeff Bell
WPVI Preventing Voters from Watching Bell vs. Booker Debate
WPVI covering for Cory Booker?
WPVI Preventing Voters from Watching Bell vs. Booker Debate
October 31, 2014
New Jersey Republican U.S. Senate nominee Jeff Bell on Friday issued a response to WPVI’s decision to remove the 2014 U.S. Senate debate from further viewing.
Bell said:
“On Wednesday, WPVI (Philadelphia’s ABC affiliate Channel 6) ordered C-Span to remove New Jersey’s only 2014 U. S. Senate debate from the C-Span website. Since Channel 6 is not offering the debate for viewing on its own website, this means that the only debate between Senator Cory Booker and me is no longer available online to the voters who will decide this election next Tuesday. This is a decision by a major news organization to suppress a program that the very same news organization, itself the main media sponsor of the debate, has described as an essential service to the public.
“I commend C-Span for televising the debate five times in the last four days, and regret the decision of the debate’s producer, Channel 6, to deny a similar opportunity to its own viewers and to the voters of our state.”
Keynesians Are In Hysterics Because Their Funny-Money Experiment Is Coming To An End
Keynesians Are In Hysterics Because Their Funny-Money Experiment Is Coming To An End\
At the Washington Post’s “Wonkblog,” Matt O’Brien wrote a typical sort of hysterical screed about the gold standard system – the system that the United States used for nearly two centuries, until 1971. During that time, the country went from a handful of rebellious subsistence farmers, worn down by over a decade of war, hyperinflation and unstable government, to the most successful and wealthiest country in the world.
Think about that.
Now, let’s see what O’Brien wrote:
“When it comes to crackpot economic ideas, the gold standard is, well, the gold standard.
It’s a barbarous relic that has nothing to recommend it today. Pegging the dollar to the price of gold, you see, is just a doomsday device for turning recessions into depressions.”
To me, even without getting into any details, this smacks of a certain lack of connection with any fact of reality or history. You just don’t become the most successful country of the last two centuries with a “crackpot” monetary system that is a “doomsday device.”
The last twenty years of the U.S.’s gold standard era – the Bretton Woods years when the dollar was worth 1/35th of an ounce of gold – were times of prosperity and abundance, especially for the U.S. middle class. The gold standard era didn’t end in 1971 because it was producing bad results, and people decided it was time to find something better. It ended because those responsible for maintaining it were idiots.
I would even say that those years, the 1950s and 1960s, were the best of the last century, 1914-2014.
If the gold standard system is so horrible, then how did that happen?
Since 1971, even by the U.S. government’s falsely sunny statistics, the U.S. “real” median full-time male income has gone nowhere.
The Daily Beast’s Hit Piece on Cory Booker Sure is Weak
The Daily Beast’s Hit Piece on Cory Booker Sure is Weak
October 25, 2014 by Daniel Greenfield 0 Comments
Daniel Greenfield, a Shillman Journalism Fellow at the Freedom Center, is a New York writer focusing on radical Islam. He is completing a book on the international challenges America faces in the 21st century.
Cory Booker has often been accused of putting style over substance. The same is true of Olivia Nuzzi’s hit piece on him for The Daily Beast which is a fun read, but in substance comes down to nothing.
Once you get all her sneers and put downs out of the way, here’s the sum total of her actual indictment of Booker.
But a state audit by the comptroller’s office found that the agency’s director, Linda Watkins-Brashear, was a donor and close ally of Booker’s, was using the Watershed like her own personal bank account—paying herself $1.98 million over seven years, when her salary came to just $1.16 million. The also doled out millions in no-bid contracts to her friends and husband. Further, Booker’s former law partner, Elnardo Webster, had been acting as the Watershed’s counsel—and his firm had profited $212,318. “He had nothing to do with the business the firm conducted with the Watershed,” Booker’s spokeswoman, Silvia Alvarez, told me.
…Which is not to say that blame for the corruption should be placed solely at Booker’s feet—but the the comptroller’s office noted in their report that the mayor did not attend a single meeting regarding the agency. He instead sent a business administrator in his place, and then when the administrator resigned, in 2010, Booker never replaced them. He had no time to go to the meetings, he said. Never mind that a dearth of free time never seemed to get in the way of a commencement address, or a talk-show appearance, or a social-media stunt.
That’s the best that Nuzzi has and it’s not remotely news. But Nuzzi, who appears to have done little for this piece except pile of sneers, manages to take a shot at Charles C. Johnson who actually did investigate Booker.
https://www.frontpagemag.com/2014/dgreenfield/the-daily-beasts-hit-piece-on-cory-booker-sure-is-weak/
Reader says Booker is running purely on celebrity because he has little else positive to show for his time in office.
Reader says Booker is running purely on celebrity because he has little else positive to show for his time in office.
Instead of seizing the bully pulpit (pun intended) and appoint a member of his own party as a replacement senator for the unexpired Lautenberg term (as any noble Democrat would have done), Christie swallows the poison pill and calls for the special election. He knew Booker would take the bait and Christie would be insulated from a moderate Democrat with a high name recognition value. Booker is running purely on celebrity because he has little else positive to show for his time in office. There is a reason NJ is the punchline for so many jokes (and setting for HBO series shows on corruption) – it’s the politics.
NJ Governor Christie joins Jeff Bell on the Campaign trail
NJ Governor Christie joins Jeff Bell on the Campaign trail
October 20,2014
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Morristown NJ, Governor Christie joined Jeff Bell on the Campaign trail today at the Morristown Diner .Governor Chris Christie joined Jeff Bell for a meet and greet and a speech to voters in Morris County this morning. .
The Governor has hosted two fundraiser for Bell and said that he plans on joining Bell along the campaign trail.
Today’s event marked the first time Bell and Christie have campaigned together, apart from fundraisers.
Jeff was treated like a rock star by the enthusiastic crowd , even taking time out to sign autographs .
Bell the fiscally responsible choice for Senate
Bell the fiscally responsible choice for Senate
Voters who want more redistribution of wealth, more taxation and government spending, and the encouragement of more government programs that drain regular working people, the middle class and small business owners have their choice, Cory Booker. Those who want to stop the redistribution of wealth, want less taxation, less government spending, fewer government programs that drain the middle class, working people, and small businesses have their choice, Jeff Bell.
Mr. Booker failed as Newark mayor; that’s why Newark is financially broke according to recent news reports; the high crime rate is unacceptable. NJ needs a populist, not a cunning politician like Booker.
Mr. Bell has rightfully called out the Federal Reserve, a private entity, which controls interest rates, the printing of monies (money supply), and inflation — yielding tremendous power over the American economy and its people, impacting on Americans’ savings and life earnings.
Bell’s economic plan calls for an end to Federal Reserve policies that devalue the dollar and lower the standard of living for hard-working Americans. He’s taking on powerful interests on behalf of regular working people and small business owners.
The economic recovery is weak. The Federal Reserve’s printing of more monies that devalue the dollar weakens the people’s standard of living. Bell’s call to return to the gold standard ensures currency back up for the issuance of greenbacks. Current Fed policies only aid and abet Congress in its unending government spending spree causing $17 billion plus in national debt.
Deborah K. Smarth
MANALAPAN
“And Thine Eye Shall Not Pity”
Here are some powerful words from Cheryl Bass, who wrote to the New Jersey Jewish News:
“And Thine Eye Shall Not Pity”
It is time for the Jewish people to take a close look at Senator Cory Booker and realize that the upcoming election affords us an opportunity to end his political reign in office. He is looking to put through legislation called REDEEM – Record Expungement Designed to Enhance Employment.
Those who have been convicted of non-violent crimes would get a “second chance”; another program to come down the pike right behind other failed programs also espousing “second chances”. They are not second chances when they become multiple chances.
Opportunity has been given through many programs at great expense; and the results are abysmal.
The United States is only 5% of the world population, but we have 25% of the world’s prison population. The percentages work out that way because of the many criminals. Maybe the criminals should stop committing crimes.
What Cory Booker is looking to do with this REDEEM ACT is:
1) change criminal responsibility to 18 years of age
2) expunge or seal records of juveniles of non-violent crimes before they turn 15
3) place limits on solitary confinements of juveniles
4) petition court to seal criminal records. Sealing records keep them out of FBI background checks requested by employers.
Enough already. Cory Booker was Mayor of Newark for many years. He was re-elected to that position. Opportunity was his to bring down unemployment (unemployment is higher than ever), reduce the crime rate of Newark (double the national average), improve the educational system (whatever became of the millions from Facebook), and in general improve the entire city of Newark (population has left the city and blighted areas from the 1967 riots remain).
Booker has even looked to get bi-partisan support from Rand Paul of Kentucky. Kentucky has half the population of New Jersey; the crime rate is below the national average. Kentucky’s capital is Frankfort with a population of 25,527; Newark’s population is 10 times that at 277,140. With all due respect Senator Rand Paul (R- KY), find another issue to attach your name to.
Last month, in the Parsha, Shoftim we read, “…And Thine Eye Shall Not Pity”: if you keep excusing crimes and letting the criminals be exonerated for those crimes, then those criminals and others who closely are watching are only encouraged to commit bigger crimes.
As Jewish people we cannot condone, we cannot excuse, we cannot overlook.
Do not encourage criminals to commit worse.
Do not vote for Cory Booker. Cast your vote for his opponent, Jeff Bell.
Cheryl Bass,
Spotswood, NJ
A Bell-ringer in New Jersey
A Bell-ringer in New Jersey
By George F. Will
Bell, now 70, is back. He won the Republican nomination to run against Sen. Cory Booker, 45, the Democratic former mayor of Newark who last October won a special election to serve the last year of the late Sen. Frank Lautenberg’s term.
New Jersey last voted Republican for president in 1988; in 2012, Barack Obama carried it by 18 points; it has not elected a Republican senator since 1972. Booker, who has raised more than $16 million, is a prodigy at siphoning money from Wall Street. Bell is running this year’s most penurious Senate campaign, having raised and pretty much spent about $300,000. And this is an expensive state: To reach New Jersey voters, candidates for statewide offices must buy New York and Philadelphia radio and television time, which Bell cannot do.
Yet Booker’s lead is only in the low double digits — 13 points in theRealClearPolitics average of polls. In eight Senate races (Delaware, Hawaii,New Mexico, Oregon, Illinois, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Virginia), Republicans are less competitive than Bell is. If Republican groups had given Bell the money they spent dragging Sen. Thad Cochran to re-nomination in Mississippi, Bell might be hot on Booker’s heels. He could still get there with a modest infusion of campaign contributions: Several polls have shown Booker’s support below 50 percent.
GOP edge grows in final stretch
GOP edge grows in final stretch
By Cameron Joseph
With one month until Election Day, Republicans’ chances for retaking the Senate and picking up seats in the House are improving.
The GOP has been buoyed by positive public polling, while red-state Democrats are still struggling to find distance from President Obama. There are bright spots and even some unexpected new targets on the map for both parties, but the overall national environment seems to have ticked a bit toward Republicans.
The GOP needs to win a net of six seats to retake control of the Senate, and Republicans seem better-positioned to do so now than they did through much of the summer.
Democrats must hold their own for a decent election night, and they’re putting their faith in their vaunted ground game for the final stretch.
Both sides say control of the upper chamber is still very much at play, and Republicans certainly aren’t taking a victory lap just yet.
“The Senate is up for grabs and the outcome is far from certain,” said Paul Lindsay, spokesman for the pro-GOP American Crossroads. “There’s a lot of encouraging signs in many states and a good progression for us in many states. But at the same time many of these races are still up for grabs.”
https://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/219778-gop-edge-in-midterm-grows
Jeff Bell : Takes on the Myth that the GOP is the Party of the Rich
Jeff Bell : Takes on the Myth that the GOP is the Party of the Rich
NJ Senate Candidate Jeff Bell
Leonia, NJ
The Democrats are out-fundraising the Republicans dramatically, yet the GOP is seen as the party of the rich. It’s the worst of both worlds.
Why? The answer to the first part is simple. The Democratic Party has become the party of Big Money. It dominates in fundraising on Wall Street, from the legal profession, in Hollywood, and just about every other major sector of wealth in this country. This year it’s raised more money at every level, including for Democratic candidates for the House of Representatives even though the party acknowledges it has no chance of taking back Congress in 2014.
So why have Republicans gotten the reputation as the party of the rich? I believe it’s because the GOP’s policies coming out of Washington haven’t done enough to address the economic concerns of middle and lower income voters. I admire Mitt Romney for many reasons, but I can point to his 2012 convention speech that emphasized helping business owners rather than workers as a widely-watched Republican message that turned people off. Too frequently, the proposals offered by Republican candidates target help toward businesses (and they do need help under President Obama) and neglect to directly address the concerns of working Americans such as rising prices and falling pay.
So what would I do differently? I propose that we level the playing field of money. We can do this by making our dollar as good as gold. Under this monetary system, no one will have to worry about the value of their wages declining over time the way they have under the pure paper dollar; 85 percent since we went off the gold standard in 1971! A gold-backed dollar will let the American people rather than central bankers control the supply of money in the economy, so there will be no financial crashes caused by the Federal Reserve like we had in 2008.
In 1992 I published a book called Populist vs. Elitism. You can guess which path I recommended the Republican Party follow. I’ve been pushing since then for ideas besides the gold standard that put people first: immigration reform, a culture of life rather than abortion, and a tax system with one low flat rate. These are all part of my Senate campaign in 2014.
Jeff Bell Says Booker looks to the same people who got us into the financial catastrophe of 2008 for economic advise
Jeff Bell Says Booker looks to the same people who got us into the financial catastrophe of 2008 for economic advise
But Do you really trust these “experts” to run the economy?
Ridgewood NJ, Cory Booker does. He thinks we should listen to them – the people that got us into the financial catastrophe of 2008 – about how to get people back to work. He invokes expert opinion against my monetary policy planas his reason for opposing it. He’s a U.S. Senator and he can’t even come up with his own reasons.
This time Cory Booker picked the wrong guy to use this tactic against. Bell has plenty of experience taking on the experts in their own backyard.
“It wouldn’t be the first time that the majority of Ph.D. economists were on one side and Jeff was on the other and he turned out to be right.”
The PolitickerNJ Interview: Bell on Fox: ‘If you get Jamie Fox out of Democratic Party strategizing, that’s a service for the Republican Party’
The PolitickerNJ Interview: Bell on Fox: ‘If you get Jamie Fox out of Democratic Party strategizing, that’s a service for the Republican Party’
Jeff Bell knows Jamie Fox. The Republican nominee for U.S. Senate met the new Department of Transportation (DOT) commissioner over a decade ago. (Pizarro/PolitickerNJ)
Meet the U.S. Senate Candidate Running to Restore the Gold Standard in a Deep Blue Northeastern State
Meet the U.S. Senate Candidate Running to Restore the Gold Standard in a Deep Blue Northeastern State
For conservatives, libertarians, independents and disaffected Democrats, the most intriguing dark horse senatorial candidate in 2014 might just be a 70-year old New Jerseyan you’ve never heard of.
When Jeff Bell last won election – as the Republican nominee for the same U.S. Senate seat he seeks today in New Jersey – Jimmy Carter had not yet delivered his infamous “malaise” speech. Long-term interest rates hovered above 8%. Bell’s current opponent, Senator Cory Booker, was a child.
A self described “policy wonk” and “political junkie,” Bell unseated incumbent Republican senator, Clifford Case, in a major upset in that 1978 primary, before losing the general election to former NBA star and future presidential candidate Bill Bradley. No Republican has ever been elected to the U.S. Senate from New Jersey since.
In 1982, the then-39 year old Columbia graduate, who started contributing to National Review in the 1960s, served as an aide to the Nixon campaign in 1968; fought in Vietnam; worked on the 1976 and 1980 Reagan campaigns; and would attempt — unsuccessfully — to secure the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate in New Jersey again following the resignation of a Democratic senator convicted for bribery and conspiracy in the Abscam scandal fictionalized in the 2013 film, “American Hustle.”
While he would notably later serve as national campaign coordinator for Rep. Jack Kemp in his 2000 presidential bid, the majority of Bell’s career was spent focusing on advancing policy over politics. Bell served a short stint as president of the conservative Manhattan Institute think tank, as well as lengthier tenures at an economic and political forecasting firm, Lehrman Bell Mueller Canon, a public affairs firm, Capital City Partners, and in academia as a fellow at Harvard’s Institute of Politics and visiting professor at Rutgers’ Eagleton Institute.
Bell also wrote columns for publications such as the Wall Street Journal and Weekly Standard, and published two books including the 2012 title, “The Case for Polarized Politics: Why America Needs Social Conservatism,” and the 1992 title “Populism and Elitism: Politics in the Age of Equality.”
https://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/09/17/meet-the-u-s-senate-candidate-running-to-restore-the-gold-standard-in-a-deep-blue-northeastern-state/
On the Campaign Trail with Jeff Bell
On the Campaign Trail with Jeff Bell
Republican upstart hopes to ride economic plan and anti-incumbent sentiment into the Senate
BY: Mary Lou Byrd
September 15, 2014 5:00 am
Voter discontent and anti-incumbency sentiment will be factors in the race between Republican Jeff Bell and Cory Booker (D., N.J.) in November, which is surprisingly tight despite the incumbent Democrat’s national popularity.
Bell has stepped up his campaigning and continued to push his economic agenda, which he believes will restore prosperity to the middle class, revive the economy, help small businesses, and create jobs. He has also addressed the threat of Islamic terrorism on the campaign trail.
Speaking at a GOP meeting in Lakewood days before President Barack Obama’s Oval Office speech on the threat posed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, or ISIS), Bell spoke of President Ronald Reagan and cited the stark difference between Reagan and Obama.
Reagan “believed in our values,” Bell said. “He was loyal to our allies and other countries knew that.”
“The only thing we should be thinking about is how do we kill the killers before they come here,” Bell said. “Christians, Jews and minorities are being eradicated,” he said, and Obama’s administration is “anti-Israel” and has showed “passivity in the Middle East.”
Bell then turned to his economic plan, which calls for a return to a gold-backed dollar. It would be the first time in 43 years the greenback was backed by gold.
https://freebeacon.com/politics/on-the-campaign-trail-with-jeff-bell/